When the first note sounds to signal the start of the show, the audience will watch from two opposite sides of the stage.

Cast members will get from one side to the other using a pulley, as they lie on their backs and are transported by a below-stage conveyor belt – another aptly named contraption called the “stage crosser.”

The 51-person cast will tell the story of Mauro, a contemporary circus clown who imagines what his own funeral might be like.

The show began Thursday, with matinee and evening performances until Corteo closes Oct. 7.